New York Daily News

With Kristaps Porzingis out and Willy Hernangomez gone, Knicks’ situation could get worse before it gets better

Frank Isola·Feb 7, 2018 4:07 PM

Kristaps Porzingis lost his season and then lost his best friend, Willy Hernangomez, to a trade, all within the span of roughly 15 hours.

That’s how quickly things change in the NBA. One minute you’re the franchise player, the next you’re headed to the operating room for major knee surgery and an uncertain future. The only constant is more misery and dysfunction for the Knicks.

Porzingis will soon have surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee and his recovery time could be anywhere from eight to 13 months. Bet the over.

“That is not a career-ending injury,” says Dr. Fred Cushner, the Knicks’ one-time orthopedic surgeon. “A lot of basketball players have this surgery. If this is football, it could be a different story. But in the NBA, players heal, they come back and play.”

The most recent example is Milwaukee’s Jabari Parker, who was on the floor during the second quarter of Tuesday’s win over the Knicks when Porzingis landed awkwardly following a dunk, fell to the ground and immediately grabbed his left knee. Parker returned to the lineup last Friday after missing 11 months with the same injury.

The Bulls’ Zach LaVine, who suffered a torn ACL last February with the Minnesota Timberwolves, made his season debut with Chicago last month. Ricky Rubio was sidelined nine months with the same injury. And then there is Derrick Rose, who was 23 years old when he tore his ACL. Rose missed a full season and has never come close to being the same player who was the youngest Most Valuable Player in league history.

And that’s the catch with Porzingis, who is only 22 and by the time this season concludes will have missed 60 games over his first three NBA seasons due to injury. At 7-foot-3 and with a skill set so unique that Kevin Durant two years ago labeled him “the Unicorn,” Porzingis is the guy the Knicks are going to build around. The plan was to have Porzingis attract free agents in 2019 so that the Knicks, after two decades of futility, would become a legitimate contender again.

Maybe that still can happen, but the Knicks have a serious problem on their hands that must be addressed once and if Porzingis returns to full strength: Can they rely on him to be a franchise-changing player? That was a question the Knicks were privately asking themselves before Tuesday’s knee injury.

If you look at some of the league’s elite players, a few of the NBA’s boldface names have overcome significant injuries. Before Stephen Curry became a two-time MVP he dealt with serious ankle issues. Kevin Durant came back from foot surgery. Russell Westbrook still plays at a breakneck speed and above the rim despite having three right knee surgeries, although none were as serious as having an ACL repaired.

Former Knick Baron Davis had ACL surgery while in college but in his prime Davis was one of the NBA’s best players. Toronto’s Kyle Lowry had similar surgery in college and although Lowry is not nearly as athletic as Davis, he has played his best basketball his last three seasons.

The Knicks don’t know how Porzingis will be in his second act, so they’ll have to proceed — until further notice — as if he’ll be an important part but not the centerpiece. That’s how Milwaukee has approached Parker’s rehab and return with the one major difference being that Parker returned to a lineup featuring Giannis Antetokounmpo. The only Knicks player close to the Greek Freak is Porzingis.

Willy Hernangomez was benched and then traded following a promising rookie season with the Knicks.Image by: David Zalubowski/AP

Maybe the Knicks, who appear to be headed for the lottery, can find that player in the NBA draft. Perhaps they’ll hit the jackpot via a trade or free agency. But that’s a crapshoot. The Knicks haven’t exactly struck it rich in free agency the last 15 years.

The Knicks’ front office has had a rough couple of weeks, starting with Joakim Noah’s exile from the team and including the unfortunate situation with Porzingis. They can’t control injuries but Steve Mills and Scott Perry can control player movement, and the trade of Willy Hernangomez to the Hornets for forward Johnny O’Bryant and second-round draft picks in 2020 and 2021 is a peculiar one.

Hernangomez, a former second-round pick, was All-Rookie first team last season and all the Knicks got for him was a bench player and two second-round picks whom they have to hope can be as good as the player they traded. The Spanish forward became a valuable asset that the Knicks devalued by not playing him over Kyle O’Quinn. And if the plan was not to play Hernangomez, why didn’t they trade him when his value was higher?

Considering Porzingis has his doubts about the leadership of the franchise, it seems odd that the Knicks would go out of their way to bury his best friend on the bench and then trade him. Speaking of which, what are the odds Porzingis, who spent last summer in Latvia, allows the Knicks to handle his rehabilitation?

Believe it or not, the sight of Porzingis clutching his knee may only be the start of what the future holds.